Leafs have to forget Reimer-gate and refocus

At the risk of overblowing the situation even further, Mike Zeisberger wonders: Since when has criticizing the play of any player been taken out of the head coach's way of doing things, the way Randy Carlyle did with goalie James Reimer? (Veronica Henri/QMI Agency/Files)

TORONTO - In the minds of those in the Maple Leafs front office, Reimer-gate is a non-issue.

With just 11 games remaining in the regular season, a huge home date against the rival Montreal Canadiens looming on Saturday and Toronto mired in a three-game losing funk, now is not the time to fret over the potentially hurt feelings of a well-paid professional athlete.

To that end, when asked if he had any issues with coach Randy Carlyle’s post-game remark that goalie James Reimer was “just OK” in Tuesday’s 3-2 loss in Detroit, Leafs VP of hockey operations Dave Poulin was short and to the point.

“No, I don’t,” Poulin said on Thursday.

Keep in mind that Poulin was with the Philadelphia Flyers when then-coach Mike Keenan used to pull his starting goaltenders with regularity, earning him the nickname “Captain Hook.” In his role as Flyers captain, it was Poulin’s job to go into the dressing room and make certain the goalies had not been stripped of their confidence by the no-nonsense coach.